Friday, 25 December 2015

Meet a winemaker doing his best for the environment

He's
a climate-change activist, an equal opportunities advocate and
committed environmentalist - all of which play a role in the organic
wines produced by David Bruer at his Langhorne Creek winery in South
Australia.

The
CEO and
co-founder of organic wine producer Temple Bruer insists all his
employees take environmental stewardship as seriously as they do
their grape farming and wine production.

For
committed eco
warrior Bruer, making good wine goes hand in hand with trying to
create a better planet.

Founded
in 1980, Temple Bruer was one of the first organic producers in the
country – and Bruer himself one of the key players in the formation
of Organic Vignerons Australia. Today he grows grapes not only at
Langhorne Creek but also in Eden Valley and at Loxton in the Riverland.

“From
early on Temple Bruer adopted certified organic grape and wine
production to protect the health of consumers, the company's
employees, the wider community and environment,” Bruer says.

“To
further improve the sustainability of the company and our products,
several stages of carefully considered re-vegetation has been
undertaken, all of which have been in line with the Angas River
Catchment Revegetation guidelines.

“Our
aim is to improve species diversity, protect endangered species,
provide a habitat for native fauna and create a carbon sink for some
of the company's carbon emissions.”

Bruer
sees organics playing an ever-increasing role.

“A
bright, clear sustainable agricultural future demands that no
synthetic chemicals should be used at any stage of the grape growing,
and later winemaking, processes,” he says.

“This
can be done and is done, with yields comparable to the district
average, at least at Langhorne Creek.

“Nutrients
are supplied in part by compost, but also by growing cover crops of
legumes and cereals, the former for nitrogen and the latter for
organic matter.”

To
be certified organic, wine must be made from organic grapes such that
no synthetic chemicals are used at any stage of the grape growing or
winemaking process. Only natural sprays are used in the Temple Bruer
vineyards.

True
to his principles, both Bruer's winemakers are women: Vanessa
Altmann and Verity Stanistreet.

“Our
big thing is triple sustainability,” Bruer says. “Financial
stability is pretty obvious, we have to be able to pay our bills on
time and to be making a profit – I make no apologies for being a
Green capitalist.

“We
also look to be agronomically sustainable, which is pretty much a
given, and to be socially sustainable. We have been, from day one, an
equal opportunity employer, but it is more than that – it is about
measuring job satisfaction. That may be an unrealistic expectation
but we want our employees to be as happy as possible.

“Where
possible I try to change either the reality, or the expectations.
Sexism doesn't exist here. I've fired an employee for bullying a
female workmate and everyone knows exactly why. I don't expect to
have a problem like that again.

“And
when it comes to wine making, I don't see that you need a penis to do
the job. It just isn't an essential part of the role. I care more
about the palate than the sex of a winemaker.”

Bruer says he is seeing
a huge lift in interest in preservative-free wines, but less passion
about organic wines.

“From
our point of view we find organic wines taste better. But for most
consumers there are 10 key criteria. Number one is value for money.
Number two is value for money. Number three is value for money ….

“Some
kind of organic or biodynamic credential can be of interest for
consumers but for me natural methods of maintaining soil fertility
confer better balance in the grapes grown.

“This
makes the wine making easier, so that less handling is needed in the
winery, therefore the natural berry flavour is preserved.”

Among
Bruer's environmental tactics have been using
lightweight bottles, which also saves on transport costs, cutting out
air freight, generating green power, shifting from freon-based
refrigeration to ammonia, re-vegetating more land and increasing soil
carbon sequestration by reducing or eliminating cultivation.

“All
white wine grapes are harvested at night; we want the grapes to be as
cool as possible because we are trying to minimise our refrigeration
demand,” Bruer says.

He's constantly thinking about ways to stay in
business without damaging the planet.